Panasonic Q

The Panasonic Q (sometimes known as Q and GameQ) is a hybrid version of the Nintendo GameCube with a DVD player manufactured by Panasonic in cooperation with Nintendo. The system was officially released only in Japan. A feature of its main competitors Xbox and PlayStation 2, the GameCube lacked commercial DVD movie playback functionality due to the use of the Nintendo optical disc format for games and the correspondingly small disc tray. The Q system was licensed by Nintendo and released on December 13, 2001 and listed at US$439.

Development

Nintendo's uncharacteristic decision to license the gaming technology to Panasonic was a result of a deal brokered between Matsushita (owners of the Panasonic brand) and Nintendo. When Nintendo signed Matsushita as the producer of the optical disc drives used by GameCube, an agreement was struck allowing Matsushita to produce a DVD system with the capability to play GameCube games.

Panasonic and Nintendo announced they were ceasing production of the Q in December 18, 2003 due to low sales.